Term Time Holidays

Term time holidays are in the news again.

Parents who prioritise cheap holidays over their children's education demonstrate a clear disregard for the value of education, which is a privilege, not an option to be undermined for personal convenience. 

Term-time absences disrupt not only the child’s learning but the entire classroom, and the minimal fines imposed clearly aren't a deterrent, often just viewed as part of the holiday cost. 

If parents are so quick to neglect their children’s education for a bargain, perhaps they should be left to take full responsibility for it through homeschooling, rather than relying on the state to fix the gaps they create.

I'm certain that having their children excluded from the state system after the first warning will act as a deterrent - certainly more so than a small fine. If their kids are homeschooled then they can take them away whenever they want, but someone's going to have to give up work.

Another solution could be to levy a charge on the parents to pay for a one-to-one tutor to get the child back up to speed without affecting the rest of the class. The problem would be getting them to pay.